


Anytime You Want

by ViciousVenin



Category: Bandom, My Chemical Romance
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Fluff, Ghosts, Halloween, Haunted Houses, M/M, Unresolved Romantic Tension
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-31
Updated: 2017-10-31
Packaged: 2019-01-26 23:05:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,553
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12568176
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ViciousVenin/pseuds/ViciousVenin
Summary: A high school AU in which the boys break into a haunted house on Halloween.





	Anytime You Want

**Author's Note:**

> I had so much fun writing this. Like, for real. A total blast. The house is based on the Dempsey House, but I took a LOT of liberties with that story. You can read about the original legend [here](http://weirdnj.com/stories/local-legends/dempsey-house/).   
> Happy Halloween!
> 
> Warnings: mentions of abuse, murder, and suicide.

“Guys, we shouldn’t be here,” Ray hissed as he trailed behind the others. “Let’s just go.”

“Oh, come on, Ray! Have a little fun!” Gerard said, much louder than Ray would’ve liked.

“Yeah, it’s my birthday, for fuck’s sake. Give me this _one thing_ , Toro,” Frank grumbled.

Reluctantly, Ray followed the rest of the guys as they approached the old abandoned house. It didn’t look as big as he would’ve thought; all the stories about it made it sound larger than life, but it was actually pretty small. The house was made from a weird, orangey kind of stone, which he could only barely see in the dying light of the sunset. All the windows were boarded up and spray painted over, and the wrought iron gates in front of the house were rusted and hanging on their hinges. Still, the gates were firmly shut with a pad lock chained between them, letting them know that they were not welcome.

“Come on, fuckers,” Frank whispered as he scaled the low stone wall beside the gates and hopped over.

Gerard and Mikey quickly followed suit, but Ray hesitated. He cast a wary glance behind him, afraid that at any second some kid just trying to go trick-or-treating could round the street corner, and the kid’s parents would call the fucking cops on them. As he scanned the street, his eyes caught on something swinging in the breeze down the block, but when he did a double take, he couldn’t see anything there.

“Ray, dude, get over here,” came Mikey’s voice from the other side of the wall.

“Fine.” He was still unhappy about the others not listening to the many lectures on the consequences of trespassing that he’d given on their way here, but he hopped over the wall and landed softly on the leaves on the other side. Frank and Gerard were already at the front door, having climbed up the wood steps that looked like they were about to fall apart at any moment. “Guys–” Ray started, intending to give them yet another talk about the dangers of breaking into abandoned homes, but Gerard interrupted him.

“Give it a rest, Toro,” he said as Frank picked the lock on the front door. “You can stay out here if you want.”

Ray looked around at the creepy trees and the never ending black night that stretched out in all directions. “Fuck that,” he said.

Gerard smiled. Just then, Frank grunted and the door swung open under his hands. “Hell yeah,” Gerard and Frank said in unison.

Ray and Mikey started up the stairs, Ray much more slowly than Mikey, who simply bounded up to the door. The other boys waited for Ray as he cautiously made his way up, Gerard flipping on his flashlight and shifting his weight from foot to foot in anticipation.

“Jesus Christ. Could you take a little longer?” Gerard goaded as Ray tested each step before putting any weight on it. “It’s only, like, five feet if it breaks, anyway.”

“Don’t care,” Ray said, shaking his head. As he reached the top of the stairs, Gerard took a step inside and swept his flashlight beam around the room. The rest of them filed in after, and Ray swore he felt the temperature drop as soon as he crossed the threshold. _Probably just old air_ , he thought, and zipped up his jacket.

From what Ray could see with the help of the flashlight, the front door opened up into a large room that was probably once used as a kitchen and living room. To the right, there were two doors side by side. In the back corner, Ray could just make out a staircase leading down to the basement.

The paint on the walls had peeled so badly it almost looked as if there never was any, with just a few chunks of paint still hanging on. The floor was littered with leaves and sticks and pieces of the house that had fallen off the walls and ceiling. There was no furniture left, making the room an empty shell of what once was a home.

“Oh, Mr. Dempsey, where are you?” Gerard called in a sing-song voice.

“Gee!” Ray whispered. “What the fuck?”

“What?” Gerard asked with mock innocence as he turned to face Ray. “It’s not like the place is _actually_ haunt–” The end of Gerard’s sentence was lost in the sound of door slamming shut behind them.

They all whirled around, and Frank jumped forward to try the door. It opened again immediately, and they all sighed in relief.

“See?” Gerard said. “Was probably just the wind.”

“Yeah. Wind,” Ray said, trying to convince himself.

After they had stood in silence for a few more moments, calming down from the scare of possibly being stuck in the house, Frank started to get antsy.

“Come on, let’s look around,” he said, brandishing his own flashlight and moving father into the room, Mikey keeping close to him.

Ray joined Gerard as he slowly crossed the room towards the doors on the right, taking in as much as he could see.

“It’s not exactly what I thought,” Gerard said.

“Yeah, I thought it’d be bigger. More like a mansion.”

Gerard shook his head. “No, I mean– Well, that too. But I thought it’d be more…”

“Spooky?” Ray offered.

Gerard gave him a sheepish look. “Kinda.”

“What, the thing with the door wasn’t enough for you?” Ray teased. He couldn’t help from smiling at the way Gerard blushed. He couldn’t actually see Gerard’s face turn red, but he’d witnessed Gerard blush so many times in the past that by now he didn’t have to see it to know it was there.

“That was the _wind_ , Toro.”

“Still. Pretty creepy.”

They reached the far end of the room, where the pair of doors stood. Gerard held out his flashlight for Ray, who took it and held it up so Gerard could see what he was doing as he tried the door on the right.

The door opened easily and a rank smell immediately wafted out.

“Oh, gross!” Gerard cried as he shoved a hand over his mouth and slammed the door closed again. “Fucking disgusting.”

Ray coughed, covering his own mouth, and then said, “Old bathroom?”

“Yeah, must still be some sewage left behind.”

“Gross,” Ray agreed.

Gerard moved to the next door, and Ray once again positioned the flashlight so that Gerard could see. Gerard turned the knob and pushed. The door swung open about a foot, and then hit something behind it.

“Fuck, it won’t budge,” Gerard said, shoving his weight at the door.

“What the fuck is it stuck on?” Ray said, trying not to let his voice reflect his fear of what could be waiting for them behind the door.

“ _I–_ _don’t– fucking– know–_ ” Gerard punctuated each word with a shove at the door. He slammed his shoulder up against it once, twice, three more times before it finally gave way. The force of the last push made him nearly fall into the room, but Ray caught him with his free hand and pulled him back upright.

“Thanks,” Gerard said when he was firmly back on his feet.

“No problem.”

Gerard was silent for a moment, seemingly waiting for something. “Um,” he said, and looked down at where Ray was still gripping his shoulder.

“Oh!” Ray quickly let go, trying not to blush. “Sorry.”

Gerard was already turning into the room and moving behind the door so he could see what was there. “Huh,” he said as Ray took a step into the room.

“What is it?” He needn’t have asked, though, because at that moment he moved up behind Gerard and looked over his shoulder at the object. “A chest?”

“Yeah. A fucking hardcore one. Thing must weigh a ton. Maybe that’s why no one tried to move it out of here.” Gerard kneeled down and inspected the old, rusted lock. “The key’s probably around here somewhere,” he said as he glanced around the room behind him.

“Hmm,” Ray said thoughtfully, and then, “Why would someone push it up against the door?”

Gerard ran his hand over the top of the chest and wiped away some of the decades of dust that had collected there. “Trying to keep someone out, maybe?” He said as he looked at his dirty hand and scrunched up his nose, obviously regretting the decision, and wiped it off on his jeans.

“Huh. Wasn’t–” Ray started, but quickly clamped his mouth shut.

Gerard stood up and looked at him inquisitively. “Wasn’t what?”

“Nothing. We shouldn’t talk about it.”

“What? What do you mean? What shouldn’t we talk about?” The crease between Gerard’s eyebrows grew deeper.

“Nothing, it’s just–” Ray sighed, and even though he didn’t really believe in all that crap, he still prayed that no ghosts were listening. “Wasn’t one of the legends about Dempsey that he killed is daughter in the basement?”

Gerard’s eyes went huge. “You think… You think she tried to keep him out?”

Ray shrugged. “Maybe.”

“Holy shit.” Gerard looked down at the chest again. “Fuck, I really wanna know what’s in that thing.”

Ray snorted. “I don’t.”

“Come on, Ray!” Gerard stepped close and gripped Ray’s biceps with both hands, looking at him imploringly. “Aren’t you at least a _little_ curious?”

For a second, Ray forgot how to speak. Or breathe. “Uh,” he said finally. “Yeah, I guess?”

“Cool.” Gerard smiled and dropped his arms. “Then let’s go check out the basement.”

Gerard was almost out of the room by the time Ray came to his senses. He quickly reached out for Gerard’s shoulder and whirled him back around. “What, are you _crazy_? We can’t go down there!”

“Why not?” Gerard asked, seeming genuinely confused. “We’ve already made it this far.” He looked over his shoulder and called, “Hey! Mikey, Frank! Wanna go down to the basement?”

“Uhh, not really!” Mikey called back.

“Nah, we found some cool shit. Like, newspapers or something,” Frank said.

“All right.” Gerard turned back to Ray. “Please? Otherwise you’re gonna make me go down there alone, and you’ll hate yourself forever if you’re not there to protect me from Dempsey’s ghost.”

“Shut up,” Ray said, but he couldn’t help from smiling a little. “Fine. But just for a few minutes. And we only look for the key, okay? No getting distracted.”

“Deal.” Gerard grinned and his eyes twinkled in that way that made Ray think he probably wouldn’t keep his promise, but Ray knew he would forgive him anyway. It was Gerard. Ray couldn’t stay annoyed at Gerard, no matter what stupid shit he got them into.

Ray followed Gerard as he walked to the top of the stairs, nearly bumping into his back when he suddenly came to a halt.

“What?” Ray asked.

“Just–” Gerard turned back to look at him. “Whatever’s down there, we face it together, right?”

“Yeah. Of course.” Ray promised.

Gerard nodded, took a deep breath, and then lowered his foot down onto the top step. He let the breath out when it appeared that nothing was going to immediately kill them, and took another step. Slowly, the two of them worked their way down, Ray aiming the flashlight so that they could both see where they were going.

They reached the basement floor, and suddenly the air felt much colder. Gerard wrapped his arms around himself, so Ray knew he wasn’t just imagining it. He scanned his flashlight out around the basement, seeing that it was mostly the same as upstairs: peeling paint, dirt and pieces of the interior all over the floor, no furniture in sight, and definitely no dead bodies, which was a plus.

“See the key anywhere?” Gerard’s voice broke through the dead quiet of the basement, and Ray nearly jumped out of skin.

“No,” he said, reining his fear back in. “Not yet.”

They took a few tentative steps into the room, side by side, and then one of them stepped on a piece of plaster that cracked under foot. The sound startled them both, and Gerard wrapped his hand around Ray’s wrist, seemingly on instinct. They looked at each other with wide eyes, and Gerard didn’t let go. Slowly, Gerard slid his hand down until it met Ray’s, and they weaved their fingers together.

Ray nodded and then took another step forward, scanning the flashlight out again. The basement was bigger than he’d expected, and at the back he could only just make out a shape that protruded from the ground.

“What do you think that is?” Gerard asked, gesturing to the shape.

“No idea,” Ray said, vaguely terrified that this was about to get much more _Stand By Me_ than he was prepared for.

They crept forward, staying nearly shoulder-to-shoulder with their hands still tightly linked. As they got closer, the shape began to come into view.

“It’s a well,” Ray said when his flashlight beam was close enough to light up most of the shape. “Right, this was an old well house. I totally forgot.”

“Yeah, me too.”

They continued taking small steps toward the well, not quite as intimidated now that they knew what it was but not confident enough to lose their fear completely. Finally, they reached the edge, and looked at each other before peering over the top. Ray cast his flashlight beam down, and saw that the bottom of the well was empty, even of water, but that the pully system still seemed to be intact and the bucket hung about halfway down the tunnel. As he swept the light over the bucket, Ray saw something shiny wink back at them.

“Holy shit. We’ve gotta get the bucket up,” Ray said, already moving to the crank.

“What? Did you see something?” Gerard’s voice was quick and panicked. Ray looked at him to see that his eyes were wide and his chest was moving rapidly.

Ray squeezed Gerard’s hand. “I think the key is in there, that’s all.” Gerard let out a long breath, and Ray squeezed his hand again. Gerard squeezed back. “I gotta let go to get the bucket up.”

Gerard nodded. “Okay.”

Ray extricated his hand from Gerard’s and knelt over the crank. He cast the flashlight beam down so he could watch the bucket rise as he slowly turned the stiff, rusted lever. The pully system creaked and groaned, threatening to snap at any second, but it held until the bucket was within arm’s reach. Gerard’s hand darted out and grabbed the key, and he smiled at Ray when he held it up, firmly grasping it in his hand.

“Hell yeah!” Ray said.

“Hell _yeah_!” Gerard echoed, and brought Ray into a tight hug.

It was silly, celebrating such a small victory, but Ray would be damned if he didn’t hug Gerard back just as hard. Gerard pulled back, but only far enough to rest his hands on Ray’s shoulders. Ray’s hands lingered on Gerard’s hips, and then their eyes met.

Gerard looked up at him like he wasn’t sure what he wanted. Ray wasn’t sure exactly what he wanted himself, but he knew he’d like to stay here with Gerard in his arms for as long as possible. So, he didn’t move. That is, until Gerard pushed up on his toes and leaned in, eyes sliding closed. Ray couldn’t really believe this was happening, but he closed his eyes in anticipation anyway. He felt the ghost of Gerard’s breath on his lips and then–

“Hey, guys!” Mikey called from the top of the stairs. “Come look at this!”

Gerard and Ray leapt apart immediately, looking anywhere but each other.

“We’re on our way up, Mikes,” Gerard said, and glanced at Ray with an unreadable expression before walking back towards the stairs.

Ray stood still for a moment, dazed. Then he rushed to catch up with Gerard when he realized that Gerard probably couldn’t see much without the help of the flashlight.

They climbed the stairs, Mikey and Frank waiting for them at the top.

“You’ve seriously gotta see this stuff,” Frank said, looking down at the pieces of paper he was trying to sift through one-handed while he used his other hand to hold the flashlight. “There’re newspaper clippings. About the Dempseys. But they’re not official newspapers, they’re, like, local tabloids or something.”

“Yeah,” Mikey cut in excitedly. “And they have all the juicy details.”

“Here.” Frank held out a clipping for Gerard and Ray, and Ray look it, holding the flashlight over it. “That one says there was a ton of controversy when the mom left, Dempsey’s wife. She just, like, up and disappeared. Left her husband and daughter with no word.”

“People were pissed off about that one. Judgy as _fuck_. Even though they were all pretty sure Dempsey was abusive,” Mikey said.

“Yeah, here,” Frank said, holding out another clipping. “That one says the neighbors would hear screams coming from the house. People thought Dempsey was hurting his wife and daughter, but no one fucking did anything about it.”

“Cowards,” Gerard grumbled as his eyes scanned the clipping.

“Show them the last one, Frankie!” Mikey was practically jumping up and down with excitement.

“Oh, yeah.” Frank handed the third clipping to Ray. “That one’s about the daughter going missing. Some people think Dempsey killed her, some think she ran away. But they never found her. Or her body.”

“He hung himself after that, didn’t he?” Gerard asked. “From a tree down the block?”

Mikey literally jumped this time. “Yeah! That’s why we’re here on Halloween, because he hung himself and all the kids thought he was just a decoration. No one knew it was a real body until the next morning.”

“Holy shit,” Ray and Gerard said in unison.

“Pretty fucked up,” Frank agreed.

“Don’t people say you can still see the noose sometimes? Like, swinging from the tree?” Ray asked nervously.

“Yeah, only on Halloween, though,” Mikey offered.

“Huh. Do you think Dempsey, like, collected these?” Ray gestured to the clippings. “I mean, how else would they get here?”

They all looked between each other. “Yeah, I guess so,” Frank said.

“Self-obsessed weirdo,” Mikey muttered.

Ray didn’t like that, didn’t like Dempsey keeping tabs on what people thought had happened in the house. Didn’t like that they had found the evidence of his research decades after his death. _It’s almost like he’s still here_ , Ray thought, and then shivered at the notion.

“We found something, too.” Gerard held up the key for Frank and Mikey to see. “We think it unlocks chest we found. I’m pretty sure it’s the daughter’s.”

“Whoa! Dude, that’s so cool. We gotta open it,” Frank said. “Maybe there’ll be a present for me inside.” He waggled his eyebrows, and Ray laughed at how dorky it made him look.

Gerard laughed too. “Yeah, maybe. Come on.”

The three of them followed Gerard into the smaller room and knelt down behind him as Gerard slid the key into the pad lock. Ray exhaled, realizing only then that he had been holding his breath until they confirmed that the key was the right one. Gerard paused for a moment, and then turned the key.

It was so quiet in the room that the four of them could hear the lock turning. With a final _tick_ , the lock snapped open, and Gerard quickly removed it from the chest and set it on the floor beside him. He had to use both hands to lift the heavy lid, but he finally got it open and they all peered over his shoulder to see what was inside.

“It’s… paper,” Frank said disappointedly.

“What?” Gerard asked. “Were you expecting treasure?”

“Well, I mean, something of value would’ve been nice, is all I’m saying.”

Gerard rooted through the enormous mound of paper in the chest, pulling a few items out and examining them. “They’re letters,” he said. “Here, look.” He handed a few to each of the three boys behind him, and they all huddled together under the light of their flashlights.

With a nervous curiosity, Ray began to read.

 

_Dearest Abigail,_

_Every day that I am without you my heart feels as though it will wither and die. The loneliness I feel cannot be cured until I am once again in your presence. I am kept afloat in this sea of longing only by the letters I receive from you, letting me know that you are safe and also awaiting our reunion._

_You are missed at school. Jeanne has asked me countless times if I know where you have gone, and every time I tell her I do not know, as you have requested of me. I will continue in this way for as long as you wish me to, but I must impress upon you how I fear for your safety in that house, with that monster you call a father. I am sorry, Abigail. I do not mean to be harsh. But I cannot stand the thought of him hurting you._

_My heart sings whenever another of your letters is delivered to my hand, and I await the day when we will meet again with baited breath._

_Forever yours,_

_Sarah_

“They’re–” Ray struggled to finish the sentence, fighting his disbelief. “They’re _love_ letters.” He looked up and sees his friends all in various states of shock. None of them expected this. Not knowing what else to do, he shuffled through the papers and began reading another.

 

_Dearest Abigail,_

_No matter how many times you assure me that you are not in any danger, I cannot help but worry for your safety. I know that you trust your father not to act out against you, but he is still a frightening man who has done many a wretched thing. Please be careful, my love. Still, I understand your wish to aid him in this troubling time, now that your mother is gone, and I am so sorry this responsibility has fallen on you._

_The town is growing curious of your disappearance. Every day a new person asks me if I know of your whereabouts, and I always tell them that I do not. It does not bother me to lie to them, Abigail, but it does sting like a knife in my chest when I lie in bed at night and think of what could happen to you in that house, and that my silence would have allowed it._

_Please let me know as soon as you feel ready to leave and never look back. I wait for you every day, and the longing in my heart grows ever stronger._

_Forever yours,_

_Sarah_

            Finally, Ray turned to the last letter, and read it as quickly as possible.

 

_Dearest Abigail,_

_Your previous letter has chilled me to the bone. I am beyond worry now that I know your father has begun to act violently toward you, and I am relieved you are set on escape–_

“Wait, guys,” Ray said. “Let me read you this.” He started the letter over form the beginning, and then continued reading through to the end.

_I will meet you on the thirty-first as you asked, and I daresay I will not be able to sleep until that night, both out of fear of your current situation and excitement that we are finally leaving this place. Halloween cannot come soon enough._

_Forever yours,_

_Sarah_

 

“So they ran away together,” Gerard surmised.

“Yeah,” Frank said. “Unless Dempsey caught them.”

A cold silence settled around them as they considered what might have happened to the two girls.

“I don’t think he did,” Mikey said after some time. “I mean, they never found a body. And nothing about that Sarah girl going missing was ever mentioned. I think they got away.”

“I think they did, too, Mikes,” Ray said.

Just then, a strong wind whipped through the room and caused the letters to flurry up into the air. The entire house started to creak and groan, as if it were a hibernating beast come to life.

“What the fuck is going on?” Frank shouted over the sound of the wind.

“Let’s get out of here!” Gerard yelled back.

They all dropped the letters in their hands and quickly ran for the front door. Ray could see it, hanging open, waiting for them. They were nearly there, just a few more steps. The wind whipped around their heads and Ray would’ve sworn he heard a deep, satisfied laugh, just before–

_WHAM!_

The door slammed closed with such force that it shook the entire house. Mikey jumped forward and tugged on the handle with all his might, but it wouldn’t budge. Ray turned around and looked at the room that was now in chaos. The wind was still blowing at terrifying speeds even though there were no open doors or windows, and it whipped all the dirt and leaves and forgotten pieces of the house up into a whirlwind. Ray watched as the wind began to move in a tornado-like formation, the others still behind him trying desperately to open the door.

The wind blew impossibly harder, fully forming into a mini tornado inside the room that spanned all the way up to the ceiling, and suddenly a disembodied voice was booming throughout the house.

_BRING HER BACK TO ME! BRING BACK MY ABIGAIL!_

Before he knew what he was doing, Ray yelled back, “She’s gone, you asshole! She got out of here and she’s never coming back!”

_SHE’S MINE!_

“Not anymore! She and Sarah ran away, where you can’t hurt her!” Ray screamed at the tornado as if it were a person, which he guessed it kind of was, in a way.

 _SHE–_ The voice seemed to get stuck on its own words. If Ray wasn’t mistaken, he heard it make a strangled sob. _BRING HER BACK! SHE BELONGS TO ME!_

Suddenly, Gerard was at Ray’s side, and he yelled over the roaring of the wind, “Let her go! Let us all go!”

The voice fucking _growled_ , and that was the moment Ray started to fear for his life. He stared in horror as the leaves and wood and plaster in the whirlwind rose higher and higher until it reached the ceiling. The voice screeched incoherently, and Ray had to slap his hands over his ears to protect them from the sound.

He heard Gerard scream, “Let her go!” one last time, and then he thought he saw the raging wind weaken, just a little bit.

“We got it!” Frank shouted from behind him. Ray turned around to see Frank and Mikey straining to hold the door open. “Let’s get the fuck out of here!”

The four of them bolted out the door, launching themselves over the stone barrier and across the lawn. They reached the street and kept running as fast as they could. As they ran, Gerard’s hand found Ray’s, and they laced their fingers together in a vice-like grip.

Ray took one last look behind him as they rounded the block. He swore he saw something blowing in the wind, hanging from a tree at the edge of the property, but when he blinked, it was gone.

As he turned to face forward, Gerard squeezed his hand. Ray squeezed back and thought, _I’m never letting go_.


End file.
